To the average fan, some of the kids will look like another Peter Zezel. To others, some will look like the worst flop since Jean Daigle.

But to Jerry Melnyk, the rookies will look like recent draft choices Glen Seabrooke, Bruce Rendall or Shane Whelan. In other words, they look like themselves.

Melnyk is chief scout of the Flyers. Since 1969, he's helped appraise the Flyers' draft picks. More than any other person in the Flyers organization, he understands the talents of the "unknown" rookies.

And more than anyone else, he knows what it takes to reach the National Hockey League.

From his summer cabin on Skeleton Lake, some 50 miles north of Edmonton, Melnyk recently explained his prerequisites for a top NHL prospect.

"Skating is still the No. 1 priority," he said. "We're upgraded that in recent years. At one time, a kid could get by with roughness and intimidation. But the refs no longer permit that.

"Of course, size is important, too. You want a tough forward in a seven- game series.

"Next, I look for puck-handling and play-making ability. And then there's hockey sense. Some guys are clever off the ice, but not on it.

"Of course, education is important. Today, so many players are getting better educations."

Finally, there's the most important ingredient, the one that has made the Flyers such a successful organization over the years.

"Character," Melnyk said. "I always try to find out the character of the kids. Watching them on the ice and judging their character has paid off. I go for the kidwilling to pay the price to make the play. A kid who is going to be knocked on his butt, but will still make the play."

One such player made Melnyk as an NHL scout - Bob Clarke, now the Flyers' general manager.

During his first year as scout with the Flyers, Melnyk recommended Clarke to then-coach Keith Allen. At the time, Melnyk argued that Clarke's "character" would overcome his diabetes.

The Flyers took him in the second round of the amateur draft, and the rest is history.

"It's funny," Melnyk said. "It was my first year at this game, and Clarke turns out to be the franchise. I had just finished my 14-year pro career, and I saw this kid who could step right into the bigs.

"I remember seeing him play in Flin Flon. Edmonton had a team in the same junior league. I saw Bobby play at home and on the road. He was good, but it was common knowledge he had diabetes.

"Detroit followed him around a lot, too. We figured they'd draft him, but they didn't. When it came to the second round, I said to Keith, 'Geeze! I don't give a damn about the diabetes. He's the best player. Why don't you draft him!' "

But Clarke isn't the only reason Melnyk rates character so heavily in his assessments. Melnyk reflects on himself, a man who certainly is at no loss for character.

Even his exit as an NHL player was unusual.

"I was in Chicago one year and Detroit two before joining the original St. Louis Blues in 1967-68," he said. "Then I was traded to Philly. During their training camp in Quebec City, I had a mild heart attack.

"It was strange. I wasn't feeling good on the ice. I was light-headed and short of breath before the lightsstarted to flicker. I felt like my heart was going to jump right out of my sweater.

"I said to Coach Allen that I had to go back to the locker room. Then, slam. Everything went back to normal. The next day, I went to the hospital for an electrocardiogram. The next thing, a guy comes in with a wheel chair."

His playing career was over. But he refused to take it sitting down.

"They ran more tests, and said I had a mild heart attack. I said I couldn't believe that. So they put me on these respiratory things. They said the only guy who was on the machine longer was a skuller."

But Melnyk finally had to accept the fact he'd suffered a heart attack. The Flyers offered him a job as a scout in Western Canada, and he accepted.

"Here I am years later, still kicking," he said. "I don't take medication, and I feel great. That's the main thing."

Working as a scout isn't easy. Melnyk spends 10 months a year attending midget, junior and college games. His western territory has produced much of the Flyers' talent over the last decade.

"In the West, the cities are far apart," Melnyk said. "Through all the rigors of travel, the kids aren't spoiled. If it comes to the East and the West, I lean toward the West because these kids are used to the rigors of travel and are more humble.

"Kids like the (Rich and Ron) Sutters, Zezel and (Derrick) Smith all have that good character. We like kids who are aggressive on the ice and gentlemen off it."